One of my college roommates once blasted Garth Brooks's Friends in Low Places ten times in a row, so that we could all hear and enjoy it (Full disclosure: it was my CD) . He didn't have the excuse of drinking either. On the plus side, he probably worked out his desire to hear the song.
When I was trapped on the 12 hour plane ride from Shanghai with only a single book I wanted to read, I had to rely on my Ipod (along with wine and Benadryl) to stay sane. Like my friend, I had the bad habit of listening to the same songs over and over again on the plane. Here are some of the songs I will soon be avoiding.
Mistakes and Regrets - ....And You Will Know Us By the Trail of the Dead. Without question my favorite song of late January 2008. The quiet, loud start is fantastic and the opening lyric is wonderful (If I could make a list/of my mistakes and regrets/ I'd put your name on top.) I dig the video, except for the obvious impossibility of all that dancing at an indie rock show. Either that crowd is rolling or they stole kids from a DMB show.
Tommy Gets His Tonsils Out - The Replacements. Some people like the Replacements for their thoughtful songs about teenage alienation, but I like the snotty ones. Listen for the whispered voice of the doctor hitting on the nurse. From the same band, check the Alex Chilton anti-video.
Shine A Light - Wolf Parade. This one miraculously went from over-listened to shunned and back to over-listening. This is rare indeed. This song is one of the finest arguments for promoting synths and percussion over guitars. And the video is hilarious.
Here are a few covers I (at least kinda sorta) wish I had on the plane.
Silver Stallion - Cat Power. Back before they were cool, Kris Kristofferson, Johnny Cash, Waylon Jennings and Willie Nelson had a country super-group called the Highwaymen. If you don't know the band, acquaint yourself immediately. Their excellent songs are marred only by the cheesy 80s production, so this cover by Chan Marshall is welcome.
Jailbreak - Dropkick Murphys. The song that most needs the ultimate cover is the hookalicious wonder from Thin Lizzy and this version...isn't it. An update either needs the space between instruments provided by the likes of Spoon or the the power of Shellac, Sleater-Kinney or Slipknot. Oh well, maybe this cover will inspire.
Hang Me Out to Dry - Kate Nash. I am not sure whether I should love or hate this. Nash certainly puts her mark on this one and while I like the fiddle, I miss the aggression of the original.
Saturday, February 02, 2008
If only to punish you, for listening too much to one song
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
3 comments:
Totally agree with you on the snotty Replacements songs. I always loved "Waitress in the Sky". Steve
Your citation to "Friends in Low Places" is especially relevant to my current situation - no one can overplay a song like a country radio station. When we moved into our current temporary digs - furnished - the clock radio was set to a country station. I have never bothered to change it. But I would estimate that, of the roughly 100 times I have been woken up by alarm, 60 would be either:
1. "Ready, Set, Don't Go" by the Cyruses (Cyri?)(Billy and Miley) - the saccharine tale of allowing one's daughter to leave the nest and pursue her own career (tough, even though it means big bucks for the formerly-foundering Cyrus clan until Hannah Montana came along).
2. "Don't Blink" by Kenny Chesney - the saccharine-sweet tale of the importance of living every moment to the fullest.
Honorable Mention to Toby Keith for "Whiskey Girl," the saccharine-sweet tale of on man's love for his badass girlfriend. Also, I sense another instant classic in the song I woke up to this morning - not sure what it's called, but it appears to be a saccharine-sweet tale of a man waiting up for his daughter on her first date - he tells the suitor that he'll be up waiting, cleaning his gun.
HLK - oh yes, oh yes - once while driving across country we found ourselves in the land that knows only country radio (and crazy talk radio). I couldn't get "whose bed have your boots been under" and "that's not my pick-up in her drive" out of head for weeks.
Post a Comment